Upcoming Event: Softball versus Salt Lake Community College on September 23, 2025 at 4 p.m.
4 p.m.
Softball
vs Salt Lake Community College
Friday, March 22
Stanford, CA
3 p.m.
University of Utah
at
No. 4 Stanford
Photo by: Eli Rehmer/Utah Athletics
Utah Softball Set to be Tested by No. 4 Stanford
3/21/2024 1:24 PM | Softball
Utes return home on Tuesday to host Southern Utah
SALT LAKE CITY – After concluding their first homestand of 2024 with a record of 3-2, the University of Utah softball team is about to be tested by one of the best teams in the Pac-12 when they travel to Stanford, California for three games against the No. 4 Stanford Cardinal at Boyd and Jill Family Stadium.
The Utes and the Cardinal will square off for the first time on Friday at 6 p.m. PT (7 p.m. MT), followed by a Saturday matchup at 2 p.m. PT and the Sunday finale, which will get underway at 12 p.m PT. The Utes will return home on Tuesday to tangle with the Southern Utah Thunderbirds at 5 p.m. MT.
March 22 – 26 Schedule
How to Follow
Stanford Live Stream-2 will carry live video of all three meetings between the Utes and Cardinal, while fans can tune into the Pac-12 Network to catch Utah's encounter with Southern Utah.
Last Time Out
The biggest reason why the Utes will enter their confrontation with the Cardinal off back-to-back wins is the pitching of Mariah Lopez, who shut down BYU on Monday and Boise State on Wednesday, earning a pair of complete game victories.
Utah's ace from Arizona picked up her team's first Pac-12 win on Saturday at the expense of Oregon, going the distance in that contest as well, but she was even better against the Cougars, limiting them to a single run while scattering six hits in a 3-1 triumph. She continued thriving when the Broncos came to Salt Lake City, firing a one-hitter with eight strikeouts to improve to 9-5 on the season. Her win total currently has her tied for second in the Pac-12 and she's permitted only a single run over her last 18 innings in the circle.
Abby Dayton has maintained her status as one of the toughest outs in the Pac-12 and will carry a 12-game hit streak into Utah's series with Stanford. During that span, Dayton has hit a team-high .474, putting her average for the year at .472, which leads the Pac-12. Four of Dayton's safeties during her hit streak have been triples, putting her at five total in 2024, which also leads the conference.
Not far behind Dayton on the team leaderboard of late is Kaylah Nelsen, whose batting average in her last 12 games stands at .469. The junior from California currently sits atop the team leaderboard with 21 RBIs and she also leads the squad in two-out RBIs with nine and multi-RBI games with seven. One of those RBIs came in the third inning against Oregon on Saturday and helped spark her team to a come-from-behind victory.
Scouting the Opposition
Stanford was one of the squads that joined the Utes in Oklahoma City a year ago at the Women's College World Series and they've started 2024 like a team that has every intention of returning to that stage. Coach Jessica Allister has guided her program to a 22-5 record through 27 games and the Cardinal started Pac-12 play with a road sweep of No. 17 California.
The main reason for Stanford's success has been a pitching staff that's crafted the best ERA in the Pac-12 at 1.47 and no one has played larger role in attaining that status than sophomore Nijaree Canady. Canady's 0.42 ERA is the best in the nation among hurlers who've tossed at least 60 innings and her 145 strikeouts are by far the most in Division I. The sophomore from Kansas has reached double figures in punchouts nine times in 2024 and has given up no earned runs on only five hits in her last six appearances, a stretch that encompasses more than 22 innings.
Southern Utah's 2024 hasn't been quite so impressive, but they do sport a winning record heading into a conference series with California Baptist that will precede their visit to Salt Lake City. The Thunderbirds have also won five of their last seven, including a series victory to open WAC play over Stephen F. Austin. Monday's meeting will represent the first tussle between these programs since the Utes earned a 7-5 win in St. George in 2021.
The players who played starring roles in SUU's triumphs over SFA were Delaney Baker, who threw six innings of two-run ball in game one, and Emily Delgado, whose two-hit shutout made a 1-0 lead stand up in game two. The Thunderbirds' staff has enjoyed support from a lineup that includes infielder Ariyana Miranda, who leads the WAC with eight home runs.
2024 Team Stat Leaders (as of 3/21/2024)
National Rankings
Abby Dayton has collected six three-hit games so far in 2024, matching Utah's team-high in that statistic from a season ago. Only Haley Denning has more multi-hit games for the Utes than Dayton's 12. Denning has collected 14.
Timely with Two Outs
The Utes have been very difficult to retire with two outs so far in 2024 and Kaylah Nelsen, Aliya Belarde, Abby Dayton and Haley Denning all own averages over .400 with two outs. Belarde is 7-for-15 in those situations, while Nelsen is hitting .464.
Mariah Lopez Lately
Mariah Lopez has looked like an All-American again over Utah's last three games. In her last three appearances, Lopez had thrown 17 innings and allowed only two earned runs. She's also struck out 14 and help the opposition to a .158 batting average.
21 Straight Outs for No. 21
On March 3, Sarah Ladd threw just the fourth seven-inning perfect game in Utah history by retiring all 21 Utah Tech hitters she faced in a 5-0 victory. Ladd is the first Utah pitcher to accomplish that feat since Ali Andrus-Sagas in 1995 and the first Ute to throw a perfect game of any type since Miranda Viramontes in 2017. Overall, it goes down as the ninth perfecto in school history.
Haley's the Hit Queen
On March 3, Haley Denning picked up the 264th hit of her Utah career, making her the program's all-time leader in that statistic. She surpassed the previous record of 263, which was set by three-time All-American Hannah Flippen, who played for the Utes from 2014-17.
Denning remains within striking distance of the all-time Utah records for career runs scored and stolen bases as well. She needs 17 more runs scored to best that career mark and 15 more steals to surpass the mark currently owned by Sandy Rhea.
Mariah Lopez Sets a New Career-High
On Monday, Mariah Lopez racked up 15 strikeouts in a complete game win over Utah Tech, setting a new career-high high. She struck out the side twice in that appearance and fell only a single punchout short of matching the program record.
Preseason Placements
The Pac-12 released its annual preseason softball coaches poll and preseason all-conference team on Feb. 1 and Aliya Belarde, Haley Denning, Julia Jimenez and Mariah Lopez all earned all-conference nods, while the Utes were rated third in the league poll.
The Utes' placement in the preseason rankings represents their highest since joining the league, surpassing the fifth-place standing they achieved in 2017 and 2018, and the four preseason all-league honorees doubles the number the program attained in 2023.
Lopez Makes the Watch List
University of Utah softball's senior pitcher Mariah Lopez earned a spot on the USA Softball Player of the Year Top 50 Watch List, which was released on Jan. 24. Lopez is the first Ute to earn this distinction since Alyssa Barrera a was a player of the year watch list selection in 2018.
Senior Class
The 2024 season will be the last one in a Utah uniform for the program's eight-person senior class of Aliya Belarde, Stella Bennett, Haley Denning, Chloe Doyle, Sophie Jacquez, Julia Jimenez, Sarah Ladd and Mariah Lopez.
Five of those eight student-athletes have achieved all-conference status and both Denning and Jimenez can claim All-Pac-12 honors in multiple seasons.
Coaching Staff Additions
Two new faces have joined head coach Amy Hogue's staff for the 2024 campaign. Courtney Martinez comes to Utah from Iowa State and Kaija Gibson has donned Utah colors after spending two years with UCF.
Martinez spent six seasons with the Cyclones, helping the squad reset the program record for homers in a season three times and pile up 37 wins in 2019, the second-highest total in school history. She also helped tutor 2021 First-Team All-American Sami Williams.
Gibson, who not long ago was playing against the Utes with Washington, was part of two Golden Knights teams that won the AAC Tournament Championship to earn spots in the NCAA Tournament. In 2022, UCF rolled up 49 wins and Gibson and her colleagues were named the AAC Coaching Staff of the Year and the NFCA Midwest Region Coaching Staff of the Year.
Season Tickets
Season tickets for the 2024 campaign are now available. Fans can purchase season tickets by calling the Utah ticket office at 801-581-8849 or visit www.utahtickets.com/softball/.
Follow the Utes!
Fans can follow along on social media (Twitter: @Utah_Softball |Instagram: @utahsoftball | Facebook: Facebook.com/Utessoftball).
The Utes and the Cardinal will square off for the first time on Friday at 6 p.m. PT (7 p.m. MT), followed by a Saturday matchup at 2 p.m. PT and the Sunday finale, which will get underway at 12 p.m PT. The Utes will return home on Tuesday to tangle with the Southern Utah Thunderbirds at 5 p.m. MT.
March 22 – 26 Schedule
| Date | Game | Live Stats/Watch |
| March 22 | Utah at Stanford | Live Stats / Watch |
| March 23 | Utah at Stanford | Live Stats / Watch |
| March 24 | Utah at Stanford | Live Stats / Watch |
| March 26 | Southern Utah at Utah | Live Stats / Watch |
How to Follow
Stanford Live Stream-2 will carry live video of all three meetings between the Utes and Cardinal, while fans can tune into the Pac-12 Network to catch Utah's encounter with Southern Utah.
Last Time Out
The biggest reason why the Utes will enter their confrontation with the Cardinal off back-to-back wins is the pitching of Mariah Lopez, who shut down BYU on Monday and Boise State on Wednesday, earning a pair of complete game victories.
Utah's ace from Arizona picked up her team's first Pac-12 win on Saturday at the expense of Oregon, going the distance in that contest as well, but she was even better against the Cougars, limiting them to a single run while scattering six hits in a 3-1 triumph. She continued thriving when the Broncos came to Salt Lake City, firing a one-hitter with eight strikeouts to improve to 9-5 on the season. Her win total currently has her tied for second in the Pac-12 and she's permitted only a single run over her last 18 innings in the circle.
Abby Dayton has maintained her status as one of the toughest outs in the Pac-12 and will carry a 12-game hit streak into Utah's series with Stanford. During that span, Dayton has hit a team-high .474, putting her average for the year at .472, which leads the Pac-12. Four of Dayton's safeties during her hit streak have been triples, putting her at five total in 2024, which also leads the conference.
Not far behind Dayton on the team leaderboard of late is Kaylah Nelsen, whose batting average in her last 12 games stands at .469. The junior from California currently sits atop the team leaderboard with 21 RBIs and she also leads the squad in two-out RBIs with nine and multi-RBI games with seven. One of those RBIs came in the third inning against Oregon on Saturday and helped spark her team to a come-from-behind victory.
Scouting the Opposition
Stanford was one of the squads that joined the Utes in Oklahoma City a year ago at the Women's College World Series and they've started 2024 like a team that has every intention of returning to that stage. Coach Jessica Allister has guided her program to a 22-5 record through 27 games and the Cardinal started Pac-12 play with a road sweep of No. 17 California.
The main reason for Stanford's success has been a pitching staff that's crafted the best ERA in the Pac-12 at 1.47 and no one has played larger role in attaining that status than sophomore Nijaree Canady. Canady's 0.42 ERA is the best in the nation among hurlers who've tossed at least 60 innings and her 145 strikeouts are by far the most in Division I. The sophomore from Kansas has reached double figures in punchouts nine times in 2024 and has given up no earned runs on only five hits in her last six appearances, a stretch that encompasses more than 22 innings.
Southern Utah's 2024 hasn't been quite so impressive, but they do sport a winning record heading into a conference series with California Baptist that will precede their visit to Salt Lake City. The Thunderbirds have also won five of their last seven, including a series victory to open WAC play over Stephen F. Austin. Monday's meeting will represent the first tussle between these programs since the Utes earned a 7-5 win in St. George in 2021.
The players who played starring roles in SUU's triumphs over SFA were Delaney Baker, who threw six innings of two-run ball in game one, and Emily Delgado, whose two-hit shutout made a 1-0 lead stand up in game two. The Thunderbirds' staff has enjoyed support from a lineup that includes infielder Ariyana Miranda, who leads the WAC with eight home runs.
2024 Team Stat Leaders (as of 3/21/2024)
| Batting Avg. | Abby Dayton | .472 | |
| Slugging % | Abby Dayton | .697 | |
| On Base % | Abby Dayton | .500 | |
| Runs Scored | Haley Denning | 28 | |
| Hits | Haley Denning | 43 | |
| RBI | Kaylah Nelsen | 21 | |
| Doubles | Kaylah Nelsen | 9 | |
| Home Runs | Aliya Belarde Leilani Melendez Karlie Davison Abby Dayton |
2 | |
| Stolen Bases | Haley Denning | 17 | |
| ERA | Mariah Lopez | 2.75 (91.2 IP) |
| K's | Mariah Lopez | 97 |
| Wins | Mariah Lopez | 9 |
National Rankings
- Abby Dayton owns spots in the top 15 nationally in three different statistics, starting with triples, where her five three-baggers have her tied for second. She's also 10th in the country in hits and 13th in batting average.
- Haley Denning's 43 base knocks put her tied for eighth in Division I and she's one of six players sharing 13th in the country in stolen bases with 17. She's also the 23rd leading hitter in the country.
- Mariah Lopez has climbed up to 15th in the country in strikeouts with 97 strikeouts and she's tied for 18th innings pitched and 36th in the nation in win with nine.
- Mariah Lopez has been the winning pitcher in each of her last three starts, putting her at nine on the season, tied for second in the Pac-12. Lopez's 97 strikeouts are also second in the conference and she leads the league innings pitched.
- Abby Dayton is in the top 10 in the Pac-12 in six different statistics. Her .472 average and five triples both put her atop the rankings and she's piled up 42 hits, trailing only teammate Haley Denning. Dayton has also scored the third-most runs, owns the third-best on-base percentage and has the conference's seventh-best slugging percentage.
- No one in the Pac-12 has totaled more hits than Haley Denning's 43 or scored more runs than her 28. Denning's 17 steals are the second-most in the Pac-12 and she ranks third in batting average with a .453 clip.
- Kaylah Nelsen has piled up nine doubles so far in 2024, putting her third in the conference. She's also tied for seventh in hits, with 32, and RBIs, with 21.
Abby Dayton has collected six three-hit games so far in 2024, matching Utah's team-high in that statistic from a season ago. Only Haley Denning has more multi-hit games for the Utes than Dayton's 12. Denning has collected 14.
Timely with Two Outs
The Utes have been very difficult to retire with two outs so far in 2024 and Kaylah Nelsen, Aliya Belarde, Abby Dayton and Haley Denning all own averages over .400 with two outs. Belarde is 7-for-15 in those situations, while Nelsen is hitting .464.
Mariah Lopez Lately
Mariah Lopez has looked like an All-American again over Utah's last three games. In her last three appearances, Lopez had thrown 17 innings and allowed only two earned runs. She's also struck out 14 and help the opposition to a .158 batting average.
21 Straight Outs for No. 21
On March 3, Sarah Ladd threw just the fourth seven-inning perfect game in Utah history by retiring all 21 Utah Tech hitters she faced in a 5-0 victory. Ladd is the first Utah pitcher to accomplish that feat since Ali Andrus-Sagas in 1995 and the first Ute to throw a perfect game of any type since Miranda Viramontes in 2017. Overall, it goes down as the ninth perfecto in school history.
Haley's the Hit Queen
On March 3, Haley Denning picked up the 264th hit of her Utah career, making her the program's all-time leader in that statistic. She surpassed the previous record of 263, which was set by three-time All-American Hannah Flippen, who played for the Utes from 2014-17.
Denning remains within striking distance of the all-time Utah records for career runs scored and stolen bases as well. She needs 17 more runs scored to best that career mark and 15 more steals to surpass the mark currently owned by Sandy Rhea.
Mariah Lopez Sets a New Career-High
On Monday, Mariah Lopez racked up 15 strikeouts in a complete game win over Utah Tech, setting a new career-high high. She struck out the side twice in that appearance and fell only a single punchout short of matching the program record.
Preseason Placements
The Pac-12 released its annual preseason softball coaches poll and preseason all-conference team on Feb. 1 and Aliya Belarde, Haley Denning, Julia Jimenez and Mariah Lopez all earned all-conference nods, while the Utes were rated third in the league poll.
The Utes' placement in the preseason rankings represents their highest since joining the league, surpassing the fifth-place standing they achieved in 2017 and 2018, and the four preseason all-league honorees doubles the number the program attained in 2023.
Lopez Makes the Watch List
University of Utah softball's senior pitcher Mariah Lopez earned a spot on the USA Softball Player of the Year Top 50 Watch List, which was released on Jan. 24. Lopez is the first Ute to earn this distinction since Alyssa Barrera a was a player of the year watch list selection in 2018.
Senior Class
The 2024 season will be the last one in a Utah uniform for the program's eight-person senior class of Aliya Belarde, Stella Bennett, Haley Denning, Chloe Doyle, Sophie Jacquez, Julia Jimenez, Sarah Ladd and Mariah Lopez.
Five of those eight student-athletes have achieved all-conference status and both Denning and Jimenez can claim All-Pac-12 honors in multiple seasons.
Coaching Staff Additions
Two new faces have joined head coach Amy Hogue's staff for the 2024 campaign. Courtney Martinez comes to Utah from Iowa State and Kaija Gibson has donned Utah colors after spending two years with UCF.
Martinez spent six seasons with the Cyclones, helping the squad reset the program record for homers in a season three times and pile up 37 wins in 2019, the second-highest total in school history. She also helped tutor 2021 First-Team All-American Sami Williams.
Gibson, who not long ago was playing against the Utes with Washington, was part of two Golden Knights teams that won the AAC Tournament Championship to earn spots in the NCAA Tournament. In 2022, UCF rolled up 49 wins and Gibson and her colleagues were named the AAC Coaching Staff of the Year and the NFCA Midwest Region Coaching Staff of the Year.
Season Tickets
Season tickets for the 2024 campaign are now available. Fans can purchase season tickets by calling the Utah ticket office at 801-581-8849 or visit www.utahtickets.com/softball/.
Follow the Utes!
Fans can follow along on social media (Twitter: @Utah_Softball |Instagram: @utahsoftball | Facebook: Facebook.com/Utessoftball).
Players Mentioned
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